Chapter 9: Party and Tricks

Whether New York University would become Bruce's supporter remained uncertain, but the outstanding student representative that Principal Sexton spoke of was soon to complete his LLM studies.

Bruce's one-year International Law and Legal Studies program had already ended in April, with the graduation ceremony scheduled for May 17th, meaning their departure was imminent.

As graduation season approached, various completion and graduation activities were being announced, planned, or held. Bruce was initially reluctant to participate in the wild underwear parties, which are pretty much a staple of American college graduation parties. There are even raunchy parties that are quite sensational.

Typically, to encourage graduates to attend, the party organizers charge students for the decorations they wear, ranging from one to several dollars per item. Those who attend naked do not have to pay any fees. Many raunchy parties are held in very secretive locations, and some even take place in the school's library.

And don't think that this is just a thing for bad students. Raunchy parties have become a trend at prestigious universities such as Yale, Columbia, MIT, and Brown. Many American college students show a keen interest in attending "raunchy parties," eager to defy social norms by shedding their clothes and achieving "freedom of body and mind."

However, today's party was an invitation from Lisa, and since Bruce happened to have something to discuss with her, he happily accepted the invitation. The scale of this revelry was not small, taking place in a nice house not far from the campus, presumably provided by some wealthy scion.

From the gate, Bruce could already see the surging crowd inside. He frowned but still left Marcus and Gus in the car, as their attire was not suitable for such an occasion.

As their time in school drew to a close, and freed from the pressures of further education and exams, these students went all-out, partying wildly and savoring their last days of college. Alcohol, marijuana, and even strip shows were all essential parts of the festivities.

Bruce's keen eyes even scanned the dark corner of the yard where a man and a woman were having sex.

He walked unhurriedly through the crowd, casually picking up a large cup of beer from a table, found a spot to sit down, and looked around at everything with a great deal of interest.

"Hey, Bruce, you finally made it! I thought you weren't going to show up." Lisa came over, excited and full of energy, and immediately spotted Bruce sitting there calmly.

"What are you looking at?"

She looked in the direction of Bruce's eyes, and saw that many boys were scrambling to touch a girl's breasts. The girl didn't care at all, but kept laughing and laughing, and more people were constantly holding up their mobile phones to take pictures or Photography, and then frantically posted to the Internet, Twitter or Facebook.

"Looking at your gathering, it seems like everyone's having a great time," Bruce remarked with a smile, glancing at Lisa as if hinting at something, teasingly.

"They're not all like that. Most of them are just having fun," Lisa replied, her lovely face flushing a deep red. She couldn't tell if it was from the wine or shyness. "You've surprised me, Bruce. I thought you wouldn't be comfortable in such a setting."

The old bookish Bruce wouldn't have been, but Mephisto was quite different. In the fallen world he inhabited, he had long been accustomed to decadence and corruption. The revelry he witnessed now seemed like mere child's play, a game for the young.

"It's been quite eye-opening," Bruce admitted, nodding towards the festivities. The girl who had bared her chest to the crowd was now fully exposing herself, whipping off her top and revealing her voluptuous figure to the world. Her bold move ignited an uproar, with howls, whistles, and cheers filling the air, the area around her packed with people.

"Stop watching. Let me introduce you to my friends," Lisa said, her patience exhausted by his teasing. She shot him a look, reached out and pulled him towards the house.

Bruce felt a thrill as he held Lisa's warm, delicate hand. He couldn't help but enjoy the closeness, especially as they moved through the crowded room. He and Lisa were pressed together, her soft, fragrant presence a pleasant distraction. Seizing a moment when they were blocked by the crowd, he whispered in her ear, "You look stunning tonight, Lisa."

Lisa's ear tingled at the warm breath brushing against her skin, and she turned, about to say something, when Bruce's lips met hers. His kiss was passionate, and he embraced her, holding her close. Their bodies separated them from the crowd, and as his hand stroked her back, Lisa found herself unable to resist, responding eagerly to his advances.

"Oh, Lisa, I wondered why you were gone for so long. Seems like you couldn't wait," Wendy Quirk, Lisa's roommate, said. She had been searching for Lisa and found her locked in an embrace with Bruce. After waiting for a while, she couldn't help but interrupt the two.

Hearing Wendy's voice, Lisa finally broke away from Bruce, panting as if she had been running.

"Good evening, Wendy," Bruce said, unfazed by the interruption. He looked at her, smiling in greeting.

"I'd like to know how you managed to trick our beautiful Lisa," Wendy said, her tone playful and slightly confrontational. She raised a small, clenched fist and pulled Lisa from Bruce's arms. "Let's go inside. Madeline and the others have been waiting forever. They're probably thinking we've gone missing."

Feeling apologetic, Lisa glanced back at Bruce, who smiled reassuringly. With Lisa's delighted gaze upon him, he confidently led the way, opening a path through the crowd.

With the power he had hidden within him, no one could stop him. Those who blocked his way felt off-balance, stumbling out of the way. The three of them quickly entered the house, which was even more bustling than the outside. Thankfully, the furniture provided some seating.

"Over there," Wendy yelled above the loud music and the clamor. Bruce followed her directions and quickly found himself in a large room, where around a dozen people were chatting around a couch, the table loaded with beer, popcorn, chips, and snacks.

Perhaps impressed by Bruce's earlier chivalry, Wendy sat on the edge of the group, leaving a spot on the couch for both him and Lisa. Bruce quietly noted her thoughtfulness.

"Hey, Lisa, where have you been, is this your boyfriend?"

As soon as the three of them sat down, everyone's attention was focused on Lisa and Bruce, especially Bruce, the newcomer, who obviously aroused their curiosity.

Lisa didn't answer right away, after all, their relationship was still a bit vague, and she wasn't quite sure.

"Good evening, everyone, you can just call me Bruce." Bruce gently wrapped an arm around her slender waist and took over the conversation. "Sorry to interrupt your discussion, what were you talking about?"

"Hello, Bruce. We were talking about how lucky the guy would be to win Lisa's heart." A curly-haired young man playfully winked.

This clearly wasn't the topic they had initially been discussing, as evidenced by their teasing smiles. But Bruce didn't mind, and he didn't point it out. Throughout his long life, he had encountered many competitors for the affections of alluring sorceresses he had ensnared, so he wasn't fazed by these mere mortals.

"There is an old saying that goes, even the strongest hero is no match for a beauty." Bruce took a big sip of beer, savoring yet another peculiar invention of humanity. In his memory, the country had thousands of years of history, which was hardly ancient to him.

"Wow." The guys laughed uproariously, clearly enjoying the banter. The young man continued, "So, Bruce, what abilities do you have as this powerful hero? Can you show us?" The young men didn't seem to bear any deep ill will; they were just being playful and looking for some excitement.

"Hey, Butler, cut it out." Lisa was getting annoyed. What was with these guys, insisting on teasing Bruce?

"It's okay, as long as everyone is having fun." Bruce patted Lisa's hand, signaling her to relax. "How about I entertain you all with a little game? Does anyone have a deck of playing cards?"

Butler quickly pulled out a deck from a nearby drawer.

"Could you shuffle them for me, buddy?" Bruce asked with a smile. Butler obliged, shuffling the cards for a good half-minute, ensuring they were completely mixed before handing them over.

Bruce took the deck, showed his hands were empty and rolled up his sleeves. He spread the entire deck out, examined it for a moment, and then closed it again.

"Who wants to pick a card? Any card." he suggested.

The group quickly caught on. Butler, the young man who had been teasing, whistled. "Wow, super memory, huh? Are you sure? You looked at it for less than twenty seconds."

Bruce simply shrugged and gestured for them to draw.

"This one?"

"Five of clubs."

"How about this one!"

"Jack of diamonds."

"And this one!"

"Ace of spades."

"Fuck, are you serious? You remember all of them just by looking once? How about this one?" Butler's eyes widened incredulously, he shuffled the deck again, determined to up the difficulty.

"Black Jack!" Bruce feigned thought for a few seconds, pretending to recall, then calmly answered.

Butler turned over the card in his hand, and sure enough, it was the Jack of Spades! Everyone clapped and whistled, their excitement evident despite their disbelief. It was impressive that Bruce could remember the entire deck in plain view of everyone.